Episode 1145
Episode 1145
"Just how many requests have you received?"
I'd heard stories about Einrogard students being sad about not getting requests, but this was the first time I'd seen someone troubled by having too many requests pouring in.
"Hmm. Dozens..."
"Dozens?!"
"...Except for a few, it seems all the remaining Einrogard requests are coming to me..."
"......"
Once again, the guild members were at a loss for words at this unexpected answer.
They hadn't imagined the scale would be this unimaginable.
"I didn't realize it was to this extent. Well, for someone talented enough to beat up Count Bouillon, it'd be strange if requests weren't pouring in."
"Pardon?"
"Ah. That was careless of me. I meant the Pocket Knife Fortress story. For someone who helped design the Pocket Knife Fortress as a first-year, it'd be strange if requests weren't coming in."
"......"
Lee Han felt awkward but chose not to point it out and let it pass.
Meanwhile, Yukveltire arrived last. This senior from the Blue Dragon Tower let faint anger seep into her voice.
"Running off alone...!"
"Ah. My apologies. I didn't have a chance to give a signal. Are you angry?"
"It's not about such irrational emotions but about your reckless actions as a junior who didn't follow procedure..."
The Capital Stonemason Guild members lightly cleared their throats. Unlike Professor Verdus, Yukveltire—who at least had memorized what social etiquette was—stopped her reprimand.
"What were you discussing?"
"We were asking if he'd consider participating as an advisor for a magic construction project request."
"!"
Yukveltire was greatly surprised by the proposal.
Who would have thought a mere second-year would receive such a request proposal.
The other foolish third and fourth-year juniors from the Enchantment Magic school should learn something from this junior of the Wardanaz family.
"But I declined."
"Why?!"
"As I mentioned before, my current request list..."
Lee Han pulled out a scroll from his pocket. Only then did Yukveltire remember.
"I see. You declined the offer because of those requests."
Requests pouring in for Yukveltire, who was already widely renowned, and for this junior who was building his reputation at a terrifying speed.
Naturally, Lee Han had declined for now. He couldn't even gauge his own schedule—how could he possibly accept?
"Yes. But it's just a temporary refusal. If the situation improves later and you're still interested..."
"Right. We agreed you'd consider the offer after finishing your current requests, didn't we?"
"No. We didn't go that far."
Lee Han was dumbfounded by his senior's attempt to rewrite history.
What kind of Verdus-like person was this?
"I think we did..."
Regardless of the senior's muttering, Lee Han ignored it and said what he wanted to say.
"More importantly, is this request really that good?"
"It seems so. Being able to participate in such a request as a second-year is a rare opportunity."
Honing one's magical skills was a given, but the process would also allow building many connections and reputation.
Completed structures don't disappear easily.
With luck, this structure would stand as lasting proof of the mage's skills, like a monument praising a king's achievements.
And such evidence naturally leads to invitations from other outstanding magic artisans and guilds, so objectively speaking, it was right to seize such an opportunity if it came in second year.
"How about stopping your work assisting Diret and accepting this request instead?"
"......"
Lee Han gave his senior the coldest, most contemptuous look he'd shown all day.
Flustered, Yukveltire hastily explained.
"This was something Diret said..."
This wasn't her own idea but something Diret often said.
'If a good request comes for a junior, they should temporarily stop assisting me (and Yukveltire's work too) and focus on the request'—he kept espousing this unwanted philosophy.
So it had slipped out without thinking!
"Are you trying to pass the buck by saying Senior Diret isn't here? Honestly, how could someone... Even Professor Verdus wouldn't go that far."
"...Call Diret! Right now!"
'No wonder they say she's no different from Gainando when it comes to royal stubbornness.'
To think she'd exploit Diret's absence to make such an unreasonable demand.
Lee Han shook his head vigorously.
As the two students argued, the Capital Stonemason Guild members hastily intervened.
"Please don't fight over a commission."
"We're not fighting over the commission... Well. No, we're not."
"We never imagined Student Wardanaz would receive so many excellent offers—that's our mistake. Though we should have realized when we heard the Daylily Magic Tower entrusted him with a spirit artifact commission."
The stonemasons lamented among themselves, 'Why didn't we notice sooner?'
They'd initially thought it might be a baseless rumor that the Daylily Magic Tower would entrust a spirit artifact commission to a second-year student, but hearing it firsthand made it convincing.
"That's... Well... Not exactly."
Lee Han tried to explain but gave up again.
It seemed he was abandoning more sentences than usual today.
"How about this instead? Constructing a magical structure within Einrogard."
"!"
The Capital Stonemason Guild members proposed an unexpectedly bold suggestion that neither student had anticipated.
Their current project was a medium-sized magical lighthouse to be installed near the rapids.
While lighthouses might conjure images of simple light beacons, magical ones required complex functionalities.
A magical lighthouse near rapids needed to control the violently swirling currents, calm the enraged spirits of water, rivers, and seas caused by them, while simultaneously assisting passing ships.
This was challenging enough that even Professor Verdus would secretly find it interesting—a properly difficult magical construction.
At any rate, this commission was still nearly a blank slate. They hadn't even secured laborers or mages, and the blueprints remained incomplete, so changing locations wouldn't pose issues.
Moving the completed structure itself wouldn't be particularly difficult either...
"Are you truly certain this would be acceptable?"
"Of course, Student Wardanaz. If this were an unreasonable request, we wouldn't have suggested it in the first place. The Capital Stonemason Guild isn't foolish enough to stubbornly push commissions onto incapable people at our own expense."
As Lee Han expressed his gratitude, a sudden doubt arose.
"But if this was possible, why haven't we ever seen such commissions being carried out at Einrogard before? Was it because they were conducted in areas other than near the Main Building?"
"That's part of it, but mostly it's because of Professor Verdus. We simply don't do them within Einrogard."
One stonemason answered bluntly.
Constructing buildings while Professor Verdus was around would create mistakes born purely from rage and hatred.
"Hey! You shouldn't say things like that!"
"They should know the truth. And Student Wardanaz seems to already know anyway."
"...Well, thank you regardless."
Tap tap-
When Yukveltire tapped his shoulder again, Lee Han turned his head.
"Senior. I already said we'll call Senior Diret later. I told you I understood."
"......"
Yukveltire completely retracted her previous thought that this junior resembled Diret slightly.
This junior kept gifting her an emotion Diret never could—pure rage.
With slightly trembling fingertips, Yukveltire calmly spoke. She still needed to say what she intended.
"It's probably impossible."
"Pardon? The commission, you mean?"
Yukveltire nodded.
While the Capital Stonemason Guild members and this Wardanaz junior hadn't noticed, as a fifth-year student, Yukveltire could see the hidden flaw in this commission.
The issue was the required workforce.
There weren't as many people willing to come inside Einrogard to work as one might think. Whether they were mages or stonemasons, quite a few people had an irrational fear of Einrogard.
'Though it doesn't seem all that irrational to me.'
Lee Han actually thought it was quite reasonable.
And there was one more thing.
"If fewer people come from outside, can't we just use people from inside?"
There was no place with as high a density of mages as Einrogard. As for the specialized skills of stonemasons, there was also the Stonemason Club.
"You could think that way. But that's where the mistake lies."
"Why is that?"
Lee Han didn't understand.
Participating in this would be a great opportunity for other students and the Stonemason Club alike.
It was a request that offered both reputation and rewards—why would anyone refuse?
"Probably because the request's difficulty is high, and there are few students confident in their skills. When I proposed it before, they refused too."
"Wasn't everyone just busy with other things back then?"
"No. It wasn't just one or two people."
Yukveltire answered firmly.
If it had been just one or two, it might have been a coincidence, but since everyone who was proposed to had flatly refused, it clearly wasn't.
Still, Lee Han couldn't quite accept it and tilted his head in confusion.
'I don't get it. Why would they refuse?'
Lee Han first sent paper birds to the Stonemason Club seniors he knew, asking for their intentions.
And then to the seniors attending this lecture, seniors from the Enchantment Magic faction, and even seniors from other factions who might be interested.
To Wardanaz
Thank you for the good request. Though it's embarrassing that I couldn't bring such a request to my junior myself, now that I've been proposed to, I'll do my best to help.
Anpagon
To Wardanaz
Was this proposed by the stonemasons from today's lecture!? That's amazing, Wardanaz! To think you'd take on a construction request within Einrogard's territory. Actually, some crazy senior proposed it last year, but everyone talked them out of refusing it. Anyway, thanks for letting me join! It's rewarding to have a good junior like you.
Markang
...
...
The swift replies made Lee Han's face stiffen.
Seeing his expression, Yukveltire responded as if she had expected it.
"Looks like everyone refused."
"...Ah, no. More people are willing to participate than I thought."
"How many? How many have refused so far?"
"Uhh..."
"Ten?"
"Zero."
"......"
Yukveltire was baffled.
How?!
Lee Han, who had already figured out the truth, exchanged glances with the Capital Stonemason Guild members.
The guild members, experienced in such construction projects, nodded knowingly, as if they had already guessed the situation.
In construction work, a mage's magical skill was important, but so was their character.
Just look at someone like Professor Verdus. No matter how skilled he was in magic, he was absolutely not the kind of mage who could command dozens of people.
"I don't get it. What's the difference between this year and last year...?"
"Maybe last year the climate was bad, the light of the Guest Star was dim, and the king of lightning spirits was trapped, so that's why."
Lee Han threw out some random nonsense. Yukveltire grew even more confused.
"Is this some divination magic I don't know about? I've never heard of this kind of fortune-telling..."
"It's not your main field of study, Senior. More importantly, Senior, what role did Senior Anpagon take in last year's request?"
As a fellow Enchantment Magic faction member and currently a fourth-year, Anpagon was one of the more sociable students in the faction.
If Yukveltire had been leading the request, Anpagon would have likely taken on a significant role.
"Anpagon refused. I told you. Everyone refused."
"...Ah."
Lee Han reread the letter.
Come to think of it, Anpagon hadn't written anything about taking part last year.
Though he hadn't written that he hadn't taken part either...
'At this point, the Enchantment Magic faction should just drop the word "faction."'
With this level of cohesion, it was less of a faction and more of a gathering—no, even "gathering" was too generous a term.
They should just rename it to <List of Enchantment Mages> or <Enchantment Mage Roster>...